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growth of the company, attract new investors and enable
future payment of dividends in line with the applicable law and
the company’s Articles of Association. (QSE)
 MSCI: MPHC and QFLS are not to be added to MSCI Equity
Indexes until further notice; BRES weight doubled and DHBK
moved from standard to small-cap - MSCI will not add Mesaieed
Petrochemical and Qatar Fuel Co. to the MSCI Global Investable
Market Indexes (GIMI) as part of the November index review as
these companies impose low ownership limits for individual
investors. Such limits may potentially result in index
replicability issues for institutional investors. MSCI plans to
consult with market participants to define an appropriate
threshold for individual ownership limits in the MSCI GIMI as
soon as practicable. According to MSCI, Mesaieed
Petrochemical and Qatar Fuel Co will remain ineligible for
inclusion in the MSCI Equity Indexes until further notice. The
decision regarding MPHC and QFLS was unexpected and we
await further clarification from MSCI. In other changes, as
expected, BRES will have its weight doubled in the standard
index. Also, DHBK will move from standard to small-cap and
QFBQ will be deleted from the small-cap index. (MSCI Press
Release, Industry Sources)
 QFC sees Qatar as gateway to $2.1tn regional market –
According to Yousuf Al Jaida, CEO and board member at the
Qatar Financial Centre (QFC), Qatar, over the last one and a-
half year after the siege, has been able to transform the
challenges into opportunities by introducing a series of
economic and other reforms, and has come under the spotlight
of global companies and investors. Al Jaida said, “We are
focusing on the few markets nearby such as Kuwait, Oman,
Turkey, India, Pakistan and some other countries in the
Southeast Asia region. If you quantify those markets, which are
nearly four hours away from Doha, it constitutes a very big
economic block. And we firmly believe that Doha-based
companies can serve these markets better.” Al Jaida added, “We
are incentivizing multinationals to establish in Qatar to tap the
business opportunities in those markets. We have strategic
geographical location, good connectivity, better infrastructure
and logistics facilities, so we believe that there is a very good
business proposition here.” (Peninsula Qatar)
 Group CEO: The Commercial Bank remains convinced of
Turkey’s long-term strategic importance – The volatility in
Turkey’s economy does not change The Commercial Bank’s
perspective of the long-term importance of the country,
according to The Commercial Bank Group’s CEO, Joseph
Abraham. Abraham said, “Turkey is a very important market in
terms of its geopolitical positioning. The two-way trade
between Qatar and Turkey is growing very rapidly. Mutual
investments are going up and more Turkish companies are now
opening up businesses in Qatar. Qatari companies are also
entering Turkey in a big way.” He added, “We are committed to
Turkey in the long-term. Turkey and Qatar are key strategic
partners and we remain convinced of Turkey’s long-term
strategic importance, both globally, and within a Middle
Eastern context. Our commitment to Turkey is demonstrated
through our near $1bn investment in Alternatif Bank, recent
injections of $50mn of capital, and the purchase of Alternatif
Bank’s new head office in Istanbul this year.” Due to the strong
bilateral relationship between Qatar and Turkey, The
Commercial Bank Group’s CEO noted, “There will be flows of
capital, investments, trade and business between the two
countries. Having a strong presence in Turkey through
Alternatif Bank is important to enable us to tap into these
flows.” (Gulf-Times.com)
 IMF: Qatar has contained the effect of siege, to grow faster this
year, helping the overall GCC to expand faster. Qatar's real
(inflation-adjusted) economic growth is expected to be 2.7%
this year and 2.8% in 2019 compared to 1.6% in 2017. Consumer
price index inflation is expected to rise to 3.7% this year
compared to a mere 0.4% in 2017. The general price level is
expected to see a marginal reduction to 3.5% in 2019. In Kuwait
and Qatar, the fiscal stance is appropriately balanced, with the
underlying fiscal position continuing to improve, it stated,
adding that in the coming years, however, each of these
countries needs further tightening of the fiscal position to
ensure intergenerational equity. Qatar is expected to see fiscal
surplus of 3.6% of gross domestic product (GDP) in 2018 and
10.5% in 2019 against deficit of 1.6% in 2017. (Gulf-Times.com)
 WOQOD opens two new fuel stations – Qatar Fuel (Woqod)
opened the Mesaimeer South petrol station yesterday, taking
its network of petrol stations to 78. The opening came as part of
Woqod’s ongoing expansion plans to be able to serve every area
in Qatar, the company stated. Also, he pointed out that
WOQOD, has opened a mobile station in Onaiza to reduce
vehicle congestion and enhance customer satisfaction. (Gulf-
Times.com)
 Qatar’s real estate most stable in the region; achieving high
growth – A seminar organized by the Ministry of Justice’s Legal
and Judicial Studies Centre highlighted the reality of real estate
brokerage in the country, with a focus on the legal provisions
regulating it. Director of the Legal and Judicial Studies Centre,
Fatima Abdulaziz Bilal, said that the reality of the Qatari
economy and the growing real estate sector requires the
presence of specialized real estate companies working to
achieve balance in the real estate market and to be an honest
broker in the sale or purchase operations, especially with the
increase of the construction sector in the country. She pointed
out that the real estate market in Qatar is one of the most stable
real estate markets in the region and is achieving high growth
rates, referring to the measures taken by the State to develop
the brokerage work to strengthen the real estate market.
(Peninsula Qatar)
 Ta’heel initiative proves a great push for Qatari factories –
Under its Ta’heel initiative, Ashghal has so far succeeded in
increasing the number of Qatari factories from 86 to 131 by the
end of October 2018. The number of locally manufactured
materials in these factories, which are used in infrastructure
projects has also increased from 114 materials, at the time of
the launch of Ta’heel initiative, to 165 building materials being
manufactured in Qatar now. The Ta’heel initiative was
launched in July 2017; since then, Ashghal has developed the
systems by which Qatari manufacturers can submit their
applications electronically through the authority’s website.
Ashghal held the third forum of Ta’heel Initiative for local
investors and manufacturers yesterday to attract more Qatari

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manufacturers to join and participate in Ashghal’s supply
chain. (Peninsula Qatar)
International
 US government posts $100bn deficit in October – The US
federal government ran a $100bn deficit in October, the first
month of the new fiscal year, according to the Treasury
Department. The deficit was in line with analysts’ expectations.
The Treasury stated federal spending rose 18% from the year-
earlier month to $353bn in October, while receipts were up 7%
to $253bn. When accounting for calendar differences, the
government ran a deficit of $110bn last month compared with
$111bn in October 2017. (Reuters)
 Trump's steel tariffs create big profits but few new jobs – While
Trump has played up the narrative of downtrodden steel
workers losing jobs to unscrupulous foreign competitors, most
of the benefit from his 25% tariffs are flowing to the already
strong bottom lines of Nucor Corp (America’s largest
steelmaker) and other modernized and globally competitive US
steel firms, according to interviews with industry executives,
experts and a Reuters review of company earnings. Even if
tariffs prompt such firms to expand, they are not likely to add
large numbers of factory jobs because they have stayed
competitive by slashing the amount of labor required to make
steel. The Commerce Department issued a statement to Reuters
that tariffs will help the Sedalia plant (of Nucor Corp) and 12
other steel projects create about 3,405 jobs. That’s 2.4% gain
industry wide, according to the American Iron and Steel
Institute. (Reuters)
 German investors downbeat on economic rebound as morale
stays weak – Investors do not expect the German economy to
recover rapidly from a weak patch, the ZEW research institute
stated, adding that its monthly survey pointed to a subdued
third quarter. Fears about trade disputes, the risk of a disorderly
Brexit and political uncertainty at home are weighing on
Europe’s largest economy, which is in its ninth year of growth.
The survey showed economic sentiment among investors in
Europe’s biggest economy rising slightly to -24.1 in November
from -24.7 in October. That compared to a Reuters consensus
forecast of -25.0. However, investors’ assessment of the
economy’s current conditions fell to 58.2 from 70.1 in the
previous month, way below a Reuters consensus forecast of
65.0. (Reuters)
 Japan's economy contracts in the third quarter as natural
disasters, trade woes bite – Japan’s economy contracted more
than expected in the third quarter, hit by natural disasters and a
decline in exports, a worrying sign that trade protectionism is
starting to take its toll on overseas demand. The contraction in
the world’s third-largest economy adds to growing signs of
weakness globally, with China and Europe losing momentum.
Germany is expected to report later in the day that its economy
also shrank last quarter. Japan’s 1.2% annualized contraction in
July-September was more than a median estimate for 1.0%
decline and followed a robust 3.0% expansion in the previous
quarter. The government stuck to its view the economy
continues to recover moderately, blaming the contraction on
typhoons and an earthquake that halted factories and stifled
consumption. (Reuters)
 China’s industrial output, investment beat forecasts; retail
sales miss – China’s reported a mixed bag of economic data for
October, but industrial output and investment grew faster than
expected, suggesting a flurry of support measures may be
starting to take hold. Industrial output rose 5.9% in October, the
National Bureau of Statistics (NBS) stated, surpassing analysts’
estimates. Factory output had been expected to grow 5.7%,
down from 5.8% in September. Private sector fixed-asset
investment rose 8.8% in January-October, compared with an
increase of 8.7% in the first three quarters. Private investment
accounts for about 60% of overall investment in China. Retail
sales slowed more than expected, while growth in October real
estate investment eased to a 10-month low and home sales fell
again as developers held back expansion plans in the face of
softening demand. Retail sales rose 8.6% in October from a year
earlier, the slowest since May. Analysts had expected retail
sales to rise 9.1%, slowing from 9.2% in September. Moreover,
real estate investment in China rose 9.7% in the first 10 months
of 2018 versus the same period a year earlier, official data
showed. The growth was a bit slower compared with 9.9% gain
in the first three quarters of the year. (Reuters)
 China’s October loan data disappoints; points to further slowing
in the economy – China’s credit growth slowed sharply in
October, despite pressure by regulators on banks to help keep
cash-starved companies afloat, pointing to further weakening
in the economy in coming months. While October is typically a
slow month for Chinese credit, growth in key gauges such as
total social financing and money supply fell to record lows,
reinforcing views that policymakers will need to step up efforts
to revive flagging investment. The weaker trend also suggested
overall credit conditions in China tightened last month despite
recent easing in monetary policy, including moves by the
central bank to bring down market interest rates and four cuts
in banks’ reserve requirements so far this year. (Reuters)
Regional
 Energy shocks ‘biggest risk for Middle East business’ – Potential
energy price shocks are the biggest worry facing business
leaders in the MENA region, according to a report on global risk
by the World Economic Forum (WEF). The prospect of sharp
volatility in energy prices, the main government revenue
stream in most of the countries of the Arabian Gulf, is a bigger
concern than unemployment in the region, the WEF survey
identified. (GulfBase.com)
 OPEC basket price ends up 2.9% in October, highest monthly
average in 4 years – The OPEC Reference Basket (ORB), an
important benchmark for crude oil prices, ended October higher,
increasing by $2.21, or 2.9% MoM, to average $79.39 per barrel.
This is the highest monthly average since October 2014, the
OPEC monthly oil report stated. (Peninsula Qatar)
 Saudi Arabia-based ICD looks to deepen Sukuk markets – Saudi
Arabia-based Islamic Corporation for the Development of the
Private Sector (ICD) hopes to expand its capital market
activities and attract new corporates to issue Sukuk, its CEO,
Ayman Sejiny told Reuters. The ICD, the private-sector arm of
the Islamic Development Bank Group, has sought to help
develop Islamic finance across its 53 member countries and in
recent years has focused its work in Africa and central Asia.
While ICD has advised several governments on their debut

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sales of Sukuk, including Senegal, Jordan, Nigeria and Ivory
Coast, it hopes to attract private companies to the market as
well. “The next natural step is to identify potential corporates
to issue Sukuk. Sukuk can help diversify their investor base, so
we want to facilitate hard-currency Sukuk issuance in those
regions, he said.” Such issuance can help private companies
attract new foreign investors and allow local Islamic financial
firms to invest their excess liquidity in Shari’ah-compliant
instruments that are often scarce in those markets, Ayman
Sejiny said. The ICD is currently in discussion with several CIS
(Commonwealth of Independent States) countries to help them
issue Sukuk, he added. (Reuters)
 Saudi Arabia fully abandon oil cuts for first time since curbs
began – Saudi Arabia in October boosted crude production
above its starting point for oil cuts, the first time the Kingdom
fully abandoned the curbs since they began in January of last
year, according to Bloomberg calculations from OPEC
secondary-source data. Saudi Arabia’s output in October was
10.63mn bpd as compared to 10.502mn bpd in September,
according to data published in OPEC’s monthly market report.
As part of OPEC+ supply cuts, Saudi Arabia agreed to curb
production by 486k bpd below the starting point of 10.544mn
bpd, which was its October 2016 output. (Bloomberg)
 Oil & gas industry a critical enabler of economic growth – The
global oil and gas will be a critical enabler of economic growth
in the 4th Industrial Age, according to Sultan Ahmed Al Jaber,
the UAE Minister of State and Group CEO of the Abu Dhabi
National Oil Company (ADNOC). He said that the world is on
the verge of an era of unprecedented prosperity. “This will be
driven by rapid advances in technology and a global middle
class, which will grow to 5bn people by 2030, creating greater
demand for energy and products derived from oil and gas”, Al
Jaber added. (GulfBase.com)
 UAE aims to regulate ICO by June – The UAE’s Securities &
Commodities Authority aims to publish regulations for initial
coin offerings (ICO) by the first half of next year, CEO Obaid Al
Zaabi said. (Bloomberg)
 IMF expects Dubai's economic growth to outpace that of Abu
Dhabi – Dubai’s economy is expected to grow 3.3% in 2018 as
compared to 2.7% for Abu Dhabi, the International Monetary
Fund (IMF) stated in a report. The Dubai economy is expected
to grow 4% in 2019 as compared to 3.4% for Abu Dhabi. The
UAE economy is expected to grow 2.9% in 2018 and 3.7% in
2019. (Bloomberg)
 Emirates: Higher oil, strong Dollar to squeeze earnings – Airline
Emirates’ earnings are being squeezed by higher oil prices, a
strong Dollar, and instability in the global economy, the
airline's Chief Commercial Officer, Thierry Antinori said. The
warning came ahead of Emirates' half-year financial results for
the period ending September 30. "The profit will be badly hit by
the fuel," Thierry Antinori said at an aviation conference in
Dubai, adding that the airline's fuel costs had risen by 40%.
(Zawya)
 Dubai hotel occupancy, rates dip despite demand growth –
Hotels in Dubai witnessed declines in occupancy and revenues
in October despite a significant growth in demand (room nights
sold), primarily due to the pressure from increased supply,
stated a report. Dubai hotels recorded a 4.3% drop in occupancy
levels to 75.2%, with the average daily rate falling 6.1% to
AED685.41, causing revenue per available room (RevPAR) to
decline 10.2% to AED515.64, according to STR’s preliminary
data for October. Demand was up 3.1% in October but supply
surged 7.7% for the month. While the imbalance in supply and
demand growth has led directly to lower occupancy levels, STR
analysts attribute lower ADR in Dubai to hotels looking to drive
market share through more attractive rates. (GulfBase.com)
 DP World celebrates $3.3bn listings on Nasdaq Dubai – Dubai-
based global marine terminal operator DP World's group
chairman and CEO, Sultan Ahmed Bin Sulayem, celebrated the
Sukuk and bond listings totaling $3.3bn on Nasdaq Dubai. The
listing comprises a 10-year $1bn US Dollar Sukuk and three
conventional bonds of 30 years $1bn, eight years $845.25mn
and 12 years $452.18mn, respectively, stated the company. The
four listings together amount to a value of about $3.3bn. The
deal sets new benchmarks for Middle East issuers, it stated.
Amongst other highlights, this deal marks the largest bonds
issue from the Middle East since 2014 and is the first triple
currency offering from a Middle East issuer in the past 12 years,
it added. (GulfBase.com)
 Over 90mn passengers expected to use Dubai's main airport in
2018 – Just over 90mn passengers are expected to use Dubai
International Airport in 2018, Dubai Airports Chief Executive
Paul Griffiths said at an aviation industry conference.
Passengers using the airport, the hub for Middle East airline
giant Emirates and a major source of income for Dubai, rose
5.5% to 88.2mn in 2017. (Reuters)
 Aldar awards construction contract for mega Abu Dhabi project
– Aldar Properties has signed up Al Rakha Contracting &
General Transport LLC to complete the infrastructure buildings
and early works package for the first neighborhood in the phase
two of its $2.72bn project Alghadeer, located close to the border
of Abu Dhabi and Dubai. As per the $91mn deal, Al Rakha
Contracting & General Transport will construct 707
maisonettes, townhouses and villas following the site
preparation work. (GulfBase.com)
 BP studying ways to boost Abu Dhabi gas output – BP is
working on ways to produce natural gas from Abu Dhabi’s oil
fields, Michael Townshend, regional president, BP Middle East
said. Abu Dhabi wants to produce gas that’s trapped with crude
deposits, and BP sees these so-called gas caps adding to the
Emirate’s production in 5 to 10 years, he said. The gas cap at the
Bab field, which BP is developing, could add 1bn cubic feet per
day, he added. (Bloomberg)
 Abu Dhabi billionaire's holding firm reportedly seeks to raise
$500mn – Abu Dhabi’s Bin Butti International Holdings LLC,
which has investments spanning logistics, travel and retail, is
raising $500mn loan to refinance existing debt, according to
sources. The company, which is owned by billionaire Nasser
Butti Al Muhairi, is raising the funds through its advance
facilities management unit in Dollars and Dirhams, the sources
said. The loan will reportedly have a seven year tenor and will
pay 3.5% over the London interbank offered rate (LIBOR) and
Emirates interbank offered rate. Noor Bank is the lead arranger
and book runner for the loan, while Emirates NBD, Commercial
Bank of Dubai and National Bank of Fujairah are among the
banks helping to arrange the borrowing. (Bloomberg)

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 Oman sells OMR53mn 28-day bills at yield of 2.233%; bid-cover
at 1.23x – Oman sold OMR53mn of bills due on December 12 on
November 12. Investors offered to buy 1.23 times the amount of
securities sold. The bills were sold at a price of 99.829, having a
yield of 2.233% and will settle on November 14. (Bloomberg)